The majority (83%) of respondents to the latest Twitter poll from Infosecurity Europe 2019 – Europe's number one information security event – believe that organisations are not innovating as quickly as the cyber criminals who plan to attack them. This indicates that security strategies and solutions are not being evolved fast enough to defend businesses against the ever-changing and increasingly sophisticated threats they face. An inability to innovate rapidly also points to a lack of agility and responsiveness, which will inhibit a business's growth.

Victoria Windsor, Group Content Manager at Infosecurity Group, says: "Cyber security innovation is vital if businesses are to stay one step ahead of cyber attackers, who are constantly honing their own techniques. It's also an important driver of competitive advantage – security is no longer seen as a function that 'puts the brakes' on a business's endeavours to move forward, in the interests of protecting it. Businesses must therefore urgently invest in building their capacity for innovation, by developing their people and creating an environment in which new ideas can flourish."

Infosecurity Europe has introduced the FutureSec programme for 2019 specifically to help the industry boost its innovation capability. This will be the hub for a series of events and sessions designed to help businesses enhance their people's skillsets, to provide start-ups with the knowledge they need to grow, and to support individuals in planning their careers.

Also new is LaunchPad, an interactive 'one-stop-shop' area where visitors can browse information on all the innovative products on display at the show. Those seeking to find out what the most exciting SMEs and disruptive young companies have to offer, meanwhile, should head to the Discovery Zone and the Start-Up Zone.

Maxine Holt, Research Director at Ovum, will be speaking on the Keynote Stage on 5th June. She emphasises that there is some fantastic innovation happening within the industry, particularly among technology vendors: "They're putting time and effort into innovation, and working as partners with customers to identify use cases, and this is a step forward in the battle to keep organisations safe. But the more sophisticated attackers – organised criminal groups and nation states in particular – have huge budgets, time on their hands, and incredible technical ability. Although they might not necessarily be faster at innovating than vendors, they are likely to be faster than the enterprises being targeted."

The Infosecurity Europe poll also asked respondents what will be the most important skill for the next generation of security professionals. Almost half (46%) predicted that this will be threat intelligence. A quarter (24%) opted for quantum computing, 21% for knowledge of AI and machine learning, and 9% for DevSecOps.

David Edwards, Head of Information Security in the financial sector, will deliver a Deep Dive on Geek Street on 5th June. He believes the skills that matter most will not be related to technology. "Security professionals will need communication, problem solving and teamworking skills," he says. "The ability to explain complex issues in terms that the business and other technical colleges can understand is important."

Respondents were also asked to vote on which area of cybersecurity is seeing the most exciting innovation. Threat intelligence came out on top for 29% of respondents, closely followed by AI/machine learning (25%), IoT (24%) and blockchain (22%).

Andrew Rose, Chief Security Officer at Mastercard company Vocalink, says: "I think AI and machine learning are two elements that offer tremendous hope. The ability to recognise outlier events, edge cases and subtle behaviour change, and then automate responses, will help the industry deal with huge volumes of data, find key events and tackle them before they become incidents."

FutureSec will take place on Thursday 6th June in the Pillar Hall at Infosecurity Europe. Sessions include:• 10.00-10.40 Presentation: Planning your Information Security Career• 10.45-11.45 Panel Discussion: A Day in the Life of...CISO, Security Analyst, Pen-tester, Security Architect• 11.50-12.50 CISO Panel Discussion: Skills, Skills, Skills...Building the Security Team of the Future

Owners and managers of start-ups and scale-ups will find a wealth of insight and inspiration at the Growing Your New Cybersecurity Business briefing, which will be held from 14.00- 15.30 as part of the FutureSec programme.

Further sessions at Infosecurity Europe 2019 that will focus on innovation, skills building and career development include:• Technology Showcase and Cyber Innovation Showcase: Discover, review and evaluate the latest cybersecurity technologies.• Securing SMEs Symposium: 4 June, 14:00-16:30. An expert panel will share insight into the steps SMEs can take to defend against cyber risks and threats, protect customer data and respond to an incident.• Strategy Talk: Cyber Threat Intelligence and Criminal Innovation 4 June, 10:40-11:05. Max Vetter will explain how threat intelligence can translate into the real-time cyber training necessary to combat modern attackers.• Strategy Talk: Radical Innovation in Security: A Game-Changing Review of Security Techniques & Outcomes 4 June, 11:20-11:45. Symantec will share the most radical and latest aspects of its security research.• Infosecurity Magazine's Women in Cybersecurity Networking Event: 5 June, 08.30- 11.00

Attracting 9,117 responses, the Infosecurity Europe Twitter poll was conducted during the week of 8 April. Infosecurity Europe also asked its community of CISOs for their views on innovation in cybersecurity.

Infosecurity Europe, now in its 24th year, takes place at Olympia, Hammersmith, London, from 4-6 June 2019. It attracts over 19,500 unique information security professionals attending from every segment of the industry, including 400+ exhibitors showcasing their products and services, industry analysts, worldwide press and policy experts, and over 200 industry speakers are lined up to take part in the free-to-attend conference, seminar and workshop programme

As Walmart increases its reliance on robots to free up resources, Alexander Mann Solutions has suggested that - contrary to the popular rhetoric that robots are replacing people in the workplace - human employees are actually being enhanced by technology.

According to the leading global talent acquisition and management firm, this 'cyborg effect' – where both organic and biomechatronic elements combine – is facilitating the creation of human employees who can operate at maximum efficiency. However, the organization warns that robots should not be viewed as stand-alone employees.

"While the personification of robots may suggest that these machines are independent entities, in reality, the rise of automation, bots and AI is simply augmenting the roles of people in the workplace. Robots aren't becoming human. In essence, people are becoming cyborged.

"As Leslie Wilcocks (Professor of Work, Technology and Globalisation in the Department of Management at the London School of Economics) and Mary Lacity (Professor of Information Systems and an International Business Fellow at the University of Missouri-St. Louis), revealed in their research on the impact of Robotic Process Automation; "Far from depleting workforces, humans and robots are most effective when working together." The most critical point in this sentence is, of course, the last word – together.

"Treating bots and humans as completely separate entities in the workforce is unfeasible. While we may give robots names, the suggestion that an entire person can be replaced with a machines is unrealistic. People are wonderfully complex and they can't be sliced and diced. Instead, we must explore how robots can fill in the gaps.

"We must move the dial and look at how technology can be deployed to enhance our people in what they do – allowing bots to remove mundane and boring tasks so that the capabilities of our talent can be amplified."

Apricorn, the leading manufacturer of software-free, 256-bit AES XTS hardware-encrypted USB storage devices, today announced results from their latest social media poll which found that sixty five percent of respondents believe that humans pose the biggest threat to their personal data.

Against the backdrop of a complex and growing cyber threat landscape, organisations are waking up to the fact that one of the biggest chinks in their armour against a data security breach is humans. In fact, a staggering fifty two percent of respondents believe that people with malicious intent present the biggest danger, whilst thirteen percent believe that unintentional human error is also a risk. In stark comparison, just thirty five percent of those polled see technology as a threat to personal data.

Worse still, twenty percent admitted they have breached corporate policies around data protection, with a further thirty four percent admitting they don't even know of a policy within their organisation. Not only does this highlight the frequency and willingness of employees to breach corporate policy, but it also demonstrates the lack of awareness and education around corporate data security. There is a real need to strike a balance between policy and engagement in order to help prevent carelessness, and the dangers posed by uninformed staff.

Jon Fielding, Managing Director, EMEA Apricorn, commented: "The findings of our poll show that businesses have good reason to be concerned about employees contributing to cybersecurity risks. Whether staff are making unintentional user errors, or compromising data with malicious intent, business data and systems are at risk. The most dangerous aspect of insider threats and human error is the fact that the access and activities are coming from trusted users and systems, and can very easily go undetected if organisations are too complacent in their approach to data security."

The Apricorn poll also found that over a quarter (27%) of respondents admitted that they had either lost, misplaced or had a device stolen containing sensitive corporate information. Organisations should incorporate and enforce information security policies, procedures and, ideally, encryption on all mobile devices, be it laptops, mobiles or other removable media. It's not enough to simply have an IT security policy in place, but staff need to be educated about the policies, and the importance of data security, to help mitigate these risks. IT security should also be enforced through technology, such as end point control only accepting corporately approved and encrypted devices for example.

"Educating employees in the value of the data they work with will help to build a culture of accountability, within which, keeping data safe becomes second nature to employees at every level. Employees are an organisation's biggest asset, but they can also be their biggest liability", Fielding concluded.

Any data breach has the potential for huge reputational damage and financial losses, and with GDPR now in full force, organisations must ensure they monitor how data is processed, stored, retrieved, protected and deleted in order to remedy any shortcomings and ultimately avoid a costly data breach. Organisations need to establish and maintain even basic level security to avoid the associated risks posed by insiders, malicious or otherwise.

Attracting 12,527 responses, the Apricorn Twitter poll was conducted during the week of 18 February.Jon Fielding will be speaking at the upcoming Infosecurity Europe event taking place at Olympia, Hammersmith, London, from 4-6 June 2019. Jon will be hosting a strategy talk on 'Understanding & Leveraging GDPR Regulations to Justify IT Security Spend' on the 5th June, from 15:20 - 15:45

Technology seen as the greatest opportunity for organizations despite concerns about Artificial Intelligence.

Sword GRC, a supplier of specialist risk management software and services, has published the latest findings from its annual survey of global risk managers. Almost 150 Risk Managers from highly risk-aware organizations worldwide were canvassed for their opinions. Overall, cybersecurity was seen as the biggest risk to business by a quarter of organizations. In the UK, Brexit and the resulting potential economic fall-out was cited as the biggest risk to business by 14% of Risk Managers. The most notable regional variation was in the US where 40% of organizations see cybersecurity as the most threatening risk. The most lucrative opportunities for business were the benefits and efficiencies achieved by harnessing technology followed by expansion into new markets or sectors.

The Risk Managers were also asked about their acknowledgement and preparations for Black Swans (an event that is highly unlikely to materialize but if it did, would have a substantial impact). In both the US and UK, a major terrorist attack on the business is seen as the most likely Black Swan (UK 29% and US 35%), however, in Australia/New Zealand, only 13% of Risk Managers thought that one was likely. The next most likely Black Swan in the US is a natural disaster, with 48% of Risk Managers thinking it was likely or highly likely. This figure was 33% in Australia and New Zealand, and in the UK, where there are fewer adverse weather events, and no major fault lines in the earth's crust, this figure was just 27%.

In the UK, Risk Managers were far more wary of Artificial Intelligence (AI) with 23% thinking it likely or highly likely that AI could get out of control. In the US this figure was 15%, and in Australia/New Zealand they clearly take a far more sanguine view with no one surveyed thinking AI was a risk.

Keith Ricketts, VP of Marketing at Sword GRC commented; "We are delighted to see the Active Risk Manager Survey going from strength to strength with a record number of responses in 2018. As Risk continues to grow in importance and influence in the Boardroom, we have this year focused on the biggest threats and most lucrative opportunities facing business. That cybersecurity is now recognised as the single biggest risk for many organizations is no surprise to us, as it supports the anecdotal evidence we have seen working with our clients in some of the most risk aware industries globally.

"Technology is a great enabler and that has never been more true. The feedback we have from our Risk Managers is that information technology is the key to almost every opportunity for business going forward, whether that is supporting expansion into new markets and geographies, streamlining processes to gain efficiency or harnessing big data and artificial intelligence to power product development and business performance."

Black Swan - In traditional enterprise risk methodologies the assessment of this type of risk using a 'likelihood x impact' rating would potentially exclude it from the category of risk in risk appetite terms that 'must be mitigated'. This could mean that organizations fail to plan for if the absolute worst were to happen.

New technology like AI, automation and robotics could pave the way for better working conditions - including higher pay and reduced workloads - a new TUC report sets out today (Monday).

Government and business estimate that new technologies could boost UK GDP by at least £200bn in the next decade. But most UK workers (51%) expect that the benefits of new technology will be hoarded by managers and shareholders, rather than shared fairly between managers, shareholders and ordinary workers (34%).

The TUC says that the government must act now to make sure workers share in these gains, by raising workers' living standards and giving them more control at work.

Shorter hours and higher pay

Full time workers in the UK put in some of the longest hours in the EU, behind only Austria and Greece. And they rack up £32 billion worth of unpaid overtime. New analysis in the report shows that the number of people working all seven days of the week has now reached more than 1.4 million.

Reducing working time is a way to share the gains of increased prosperity. Eight in ten workers (81%) want to reduce working time in the future – with 45% of workers opting for a four-day working week, without loss of pay, as new tech makes work more efficient. The TUC says the UK should consider how to move to a four-day week over the course of this century.

And after the longest pay squeeze for 200 years, improving wages tops the list of workers' concerns.

More control

Most workers (74%) want technology to give them more control over their working lives.

But many employers now demand that workers do unpredictable or unsocial hours, or keep staff constantly on standby to work at the demand of an app or text message.

This always-on culture, where workers are on standby without being paid, cuts into time with family and friends and makes it impossible to plan life outside work. And it's being facilitated by new workplace tech that takes away workers' rights.

The TUC wants immediate action to tighten working time rules, ban zero-hours contracts, and give workers fair notice of their shifts.

Hopes and fears

Two-thirds (66%) expect that automation will lead to work becoming faster-paced and more intensive. And a similar number (72%) expect they will be more closely monitored by bosses.

But workers are positive about what could be achieved if technological change is managed in the right way, including fewer dangerous jobs (68%), more creative work (68%), more enjoyable work (66%), and more use of interpersonal skills (66%).

Making sure the benefits are shared

The TUC says that if workers are to enjoy real benefits from technological change, unions must have a stronger say in workplaces, so that companies that use technology have to negotiate on its use and make sure productivity gains actually benefit workers, through improved pay and conditions.

And nationally, unions, employers and government should work together to make sure that new technology benefits the UK workforce, through a new future of work commission.

TUC General Secretary Frances O'Grady said:

"Workers are having a hard time. They've suffered the longest pay squeeze in 200 years. Millions of people are stuck in insecure jobs and stressed out. And too many employers are using tech to treat workers unfairly.

"Bosses and shareholders must not be allowed to hoover up all the gains from new tech for themselves. Working people deserve their fair share – and that means using the gains from new tech to raise pay and allow more time with their families.

"When the TUC's first Congress took place 150 years ago, people worked ten hours a day with only Sunday off. But in the last century we won a two-day weekend and limits on long hours. This century, we must raise our sights to reduce working time again.

"If productivity gains from new technology are even half as good as promised, then the country can afford to make working lives better."

Peacock Engineering, the IBM Maximo Gold Business Partner, is continuing to grow its team. It has recruited John Green as a Solutions Architect, bringing additional expertise to the team.

John has worked within the Facilities Management industry for over 15 years, for companies including Aspera and Carillion, and brings a solid understanding of what FM organisations need from an asset management system. His experience gives a clear understanding of mobility, business process design and the ROI needed by Peacock Engineering's Blue Chip client base.

St Albans MP Anne Main led a debate in Westminster on the future of the UK digital and tech industries this week. Anne secured the debate following growing public interest in the digital world in recent months and after meeting with a major tech firm in St Albans.

During the debate Anne highlighted the growth in this industry in recent years, some of the opportunities for the industry after we leave the European Union and some of the ways the government can do more to help grow the industry in the years to come.

'This is an important debate on a sector of the economy that is vital for this country and will become even more important in future', Anne said. 'Across Europe, the UK is leading the way on investment and growth in this sector.'

Mrs Main raised Imagination Technologies, a large computer chip and artificial intelligence company in her constituency. Anne said they were at 'the cutting edge of this exciting sector' and she welcomed their recent billion dollar takeover from a US firm as a '$1 billion vote of confidence in the UK'.

After meeting with some major digital and tech firms, Anne shared some of the issues the industry had expressed during the debate. An 'adequacy agreement' with the EU for the free flow of data, access to talent and education where the three key issues raised.

In her response, Minister Margot James said, '[St Albans is] at the centre of a great number of exciting developments in technology, and it is terrific that [Mrs Main} is taking the lead in her constituency and making her contribution to the rest of the UK's development.

The Government are committed to making Britain a world leader in the digital and technology sector.'

Speaking after the debate Anne said, 'I was very pleased with the Minister's response and with the quality of speeches from the other Members who contributed. It is clear the government are listening and supporting UK tech. It is no surprise that this debate has sparked so much interest as we can all appreciate how important this industry has become.

'I was also delighted the Minister agreed to come and visit my constituency to see Imagination Technologies as I think this shows the level of engagement the government is showing to growing and supporting this industry.'

Anne Main MP met with senior figures and the new CEO of Imagination Technologies during her visit to their headquarters in Kings Langley last week. Imagination produces graphic chips and other cutting-edge technology for mobile phones, computer games and artificial intelligence.

Ahead of a Westminster Hall debate on the future of the UK digital and tech industries that Mrs Main has secured, Anne was shown around the impressive complex and spoke with senior figures in the business about the booming tech industry in the UK.

Speaking after her meeting with new CEO Dr. Leo Li, Mrs Main said, 'It was wonderful to meet Dr Li and other impressive staff at Imagination. Dr Li's enthusiasm and optimism for UK tech was great to hear. Dr Li spoke about the thriving tech sector and the many jobs and investment it has created all across the country.

'It was fascinating to see some of the ground-breaking technology being created and developed here in Hertfordshire. Imagination are global leaders in producing tech that is used by billions of people across the world and the industry here in the UK is going from strength to strength.'

Imagination was recently acquired by Canyon Bridge, a US private equity firm, for just under $1 billion in a major vote of confidence in the growing tech industry.

'Seeing investment at this scale is a great show of confidence in both the UK economy and our tech industry. The global outlook for the company is strong and I welcome the fact that international partners see the UK as a hub for investment and growth around the world.'

Mrs Main will use her Westminster Hall debate to raise some of the exciting growth and innovation that we have seen from the digital and tech industry over the last few years and will push the government to continue to support this important sector of the economy going forward.

The data analytics company allegedly harvested personal information from more than 50 million Facebook profiles to use to target voters in the US presidential election with personalised political advertisements.

Facebook is under fire because it had known about this data breach since 2015, but only suspended the Cambridge Analytics researcher responsible for harvesting the data this month. Facebook has also had several warnings about its data security in recent years. Facebook has publicly apologised and is investigating other applications which have access to its data.

The tech giant's stock has plummeted, with CNN estimating its market value to have dropped by $59bn since the data breach was unveiled.

How will it affect Hertfordshire businesses?

I don't think it will affect advertising too much – the breach is more about apps on Facebook and the data that they are allowed to receive/request from users rather than advertisers. Default security and privacy settings do leave a big hole for apps to collect as much data as they want from Facebook users which could be a concern. How much of the data we use is legitimate?

Facebook user figures are now under threat with search variations for 'delete Facebook' increasing 423% since the news broke, according to internet behaviour monitor Hitwise.

I expect that more businesses will follow suit. The drop in market value might continue with the loss of advertising revenue – at least in the short term. Advertising revenue makes up the majority of Facebook's income. I'm not sure that many people will actually leave Facebook – consumers are addicted to social media – I think it will take more than a breach like this to drive them away from social platforms. This might mean more uptake on other social platforms though.

At the end of the day, as an agency, we work better with more data. The more we have available the better our advertising can be. Most of the data we use is interest data, classified by Facebook based on what is knows about its users - 'Page Likes' and how users interact with other business/pages/groups - but also behaviour data which is provided by third parties. Most of this data is collected by companies like Acxiom. They compile market research and segment the data based on user behaviours like 'who's about to buy a new car', 'who has an anniversary coming up?', 'when does your car insurance come up for renewal?'. They then provide this data via the Advertising API.

What should Hertfordshire businesses do?

Companies should continue to advertise, but be more careful of the data that they are using to find their customers – at the end of the day you don't want to alienate the people that you are trying to drive to your business by finding them by using data they didn't know was there. Monitor responses to your ads in the comments to ensure that the targeting you are using is getting you in front of the right people and not annoying anyone.

I think it's quite important to note that data collection on website users is NOT an unusual practise – most websites collect data in the form of cookies. These provide data to analytics platforms which allow you to collect user behaviour and interests. On the Google display network this also allows you to target users based on websites that they visit and their interests. Facebook is the same. Other than the sheer amount of information that can collect – the only reason that they have so much data in the first place is because people are now spending around 30% of the time they are online, on social media. (https://www.socialmediatoday.com/marketing/how-much-time-do-people-spend-social-media-infographic)

Once Facebook has tightened up their data collection policies there is no doubt that any company no longer Facebook will flock back quite quickly. Facebook is, after-all, a fantastic advertising platform with targeting not really matched by any other service. Once consumers and businesses are reassured that there will be no further problems I would expect the bad press to die down, but in the mean-time businesses shouldn't let the scare-mongering put them off. Facebook advertising is really powerful already and can be matched with existing or past customers and combined with remarketing data.

You can find Mark or one of our search marketing experts at www.ithinkmedia.co.uk

With research revealing that 71% of workers want their employer to offer the same level of technology that they use in their personal lives, it is clear that employee engagement strategies which utilise emerging technology platforms need to be top of the HR agenda. That's according to digital solutions provider, Workvine, which has produced a report detailing the top ways that HR teams can improve employee engagement through workplace apps.

By aggregating and curating several major sources of research from bodies such as the CIPD, Gatehouse, Aberdeen Group and ADP Research Institute, the report discusses how apps can deliver a more engaging experience for staff and, in turn, increase a company's productivity levels.

In particular, the report demonstrates that the use of such apps will lead to improvements in five key areas of personnel management:

1. Engaging new starters during the onboarding process: through the provision of easily accessible information, corporate videos, training schedules, community networking platforms and much more.2. Performance management: by putting the power back into the hands of the employee, allowing them greater control over their development and training.3. Access and engagement with HR: streamlining processes to ensure actions are implemented quicker and admin tasks – such as holiday requests – are managed efficiently.4. Company-wide communication and updates: to not only keep staff informed, but also help those working remotely feel part of the team.5. Peer to peer communication: allowing greater exchange of information and a better feel of being 'one team' rather than separate entities.

The results of this research are of particular importance given the increase in remote working that is being seen worldwide. According to data from the TUC, in 2017 the number of people working remotely in the UK alone had increased by almost a quarter of a million (241,000) over the last decade. If HR teams are to effectively manage and engage workers situated across such wide-ranging locations, apps will need to be a key part of employee management strategies.

Commenting on this analysis, Adrian Hobbs, Chairman of Workvine said:

"Apps play a huge role in our personal lives. They are designed to make regular activities easier, so it's perhaps no wonder that there's a hunger from staff for greater incorporation of such tools in the workplace. And when we consider that 60% of European employees are using a smartphone, laptop or tablet that has been provided by their employer, it certainly seems like a wasted opportunity if these devices aren't enabled with an app that helps them connect with the company, complete admin tasks, keep up with news and manage their performance.

For HR and management teams, supervising a workforce of employees operating across a range of locations – whether in several offices, on-site at projects or even from home – is a complex challenge, but it's increasingly becoming the norm. While the use of the intranet has been an option in the past, this is now out-dated and simply isn't meeting the needs of employers and workers alike. As the world of work becomes more flexible, the use of apps will prove hugely valuable in keeping staff engaged with the company and managing employee on-boarding, training and development."